Spotted a odd trout all black head and white body ?

[deaone123]

So was searching for some trout holes managed some smallies n bluegills and stumbled on a shallow patch of cold water on the raritan with 25+ rainbows in one spot in a assortment of sizes largest was pushing over 30 inches & would hit my lure but not commit
- i have costas and the fish were shallow so i could see everything and i spotted 1 odd trout that stuck with the pack but it had a all black head and white body with no pattern just solid color and was def a rainbow by the look and shape , this is going to bother me lol anyone every see a deformity on a trouts color pattern like that before?

[Dave B.]

Sickly fish. Seen them before with a black head, usually a result of mis-handling by an angler. One of many instances of delayed mortality that occurs due to angler mis-handling or over handling, especially during warmer weather. Usually not intentional, just due to a lack of understanding as to what the fish can withstand. In this case I'd suspect either too long out of the water or over stressed due to a prolonged fight on the line in these warmer water temps.

[Fluken-Around]

I bet right were dark meets pale there is a peck hole from a blue heron. When I worked for the hatchery we would see that all the time. Herons take a strike and their aim would be off a little and cause what we called a peck hole. Then from peck hole wound up to there mouth would be dark/black and below would be pale. Depending were wound is sometimes only 1 side of fish is effected!

[deaone123]

Thanks for the info guys definitely very much appreciated, and on the heron it was sitting up in the tree squaking away

[RiverRat77]

If you are planning on eating what you catch, I wish you all the best with those trout. If not.. seems you have found a nice hole that is holding over a good amount of trout. With this extremely hot weather & water Temperatures if your not fishing for dinner, let the trout be until the water Temps go back down. A trout getting hooked in these conditions is almost a quaranteed death sentence.
Keep that hole to yourself, & return in October for what sounds like a sweet trout hole. Never know what could end up being in there... A certain trout species could even find its way from the Atlantic to. that honey hole....It is the Good Ol' Raritan.

[Drossi]

So was searching for some trout holes managed some smallies n bluegills and stumbled on a shallow patch of cold water on the raritan with 25+ rainbows in one spot in a assortment of sizes largest was pushing over 30 inches & would hit my lure but not commit


Stressed out trout during periods of elevated water temps are probably best left to the game of survival, unless you're keeping them for table fare. Otherwise consider salting away your hole until temps break back downward.

Nothing sporting about hammering fish all packed into a cold water seep. Pretty much the same BS as pulling spawning bass from their beds. Not for me. But my standards are hardly standard. To each his own.

[Skunk City]

30" Rainbow???

[deaone123]

I was targeting smallies wading in the river but had to cast into the pocket of trout a few times, but it looked to be a natural spring running into the river because the shallow water was very cold compared to even the deep holes, and on the note of 30 inches the largest one i spotted was about that length it was long and big bodied with a few fish in the 20 inch range and the rest in the 10 inch range

[AndyS]

When you say Raritan you mean the main stem ? I can count where (cool) water enters the river from to the Headgates to Piscataway on one hand.

[deaone123]

The south branch

[Dave B.]

I bet right were dark meets pale there is a peck hole from a blue heron. When I worked for the hatchery we would see that all the time. Herons take a strike and their aim would be off a little and cause what we called a peck hole. Then from peck hole wound up to there mouth would be dark/black and below would be pale. Depending were wound is sometimes only 1 side of fish is effected!

Very true 'Fluken', I'd forgotten about heron pokes. Heh, as good as they are at out fishing us even they have 'off' days! :)